Justin Rose targets majors after reclaiming No. 1 spot

Following the victory — the first title defense of his 20-year career — Rose said he now wants to emulate the likes of Phil Mickelson and Padraig Harrington by winning major titles as he approaches his 40s.

“More majors for sure, that’s what I’m interested in,” said the 38-year-old Rose. “I’m trying to chase down as many as I can.

“You’ve seen players like Phil and Padraig have hot spells towards the end of their careers where they have amassed two or three really quickly.

“If I was able to do that on the top of what I’ve already achieved, it would make things really good, so very much focusing on the majors … maybe not playing too much and playing as fresh as I can for those.”

Rose’s sole major triumph to date is the 2013 US Open when he finished two shots clear of Mickelson and Jason Day at Merion. He lost a playoff to Sergio Garcia at the Masters last year and also finished tied second behind Italian Francesco Molinari at the Open at Carnoustie in July.

But three top-four finishes in September and third at the World Golf Championship event in October suggest more major silverware could be just around the corner.

Rose first became world No.1 on September 10 despite losing a playoff to American Keegan Bradley at the BMW Championship.

He spent two weeks at the head of the rankings and sealed the $10 million FedEx Cup title at the season-ending Tour Championship, which was won by Tiger Woods for his first victory in five years.